Digitalization and ever new technical innovations are increasingly changing the world of content marketing. The good thing is that many trends are aimed at attracting the attention of users with exciting formats and creative ideas. We like to take a closer look at this.
1. new marketing trends: less is more
The good news first: quality is becoming even more important than before in the current B2B content marketing trends. Quantity is being outed for what it often is: a time waster. "A lot helps a lot" was true for so long because publishing frequency was considered a significant ranking factor. Unfortunately, it is not easy to consistently produce content with real added value at a high level.
The same applies to the long-held belief that a text can only rank if it contains at least a thousand words or more. The consequences are well known: Every recipe is blown up into a story a mile long - by the time you finally get to the recipe, you've long since lost your appetite. So let's be responsible with our readers' time and offer crisp information in varied formats.2. what you want - data-based B2B content marketing
We should be clear about one thing: What we ourselves think is great can of course also be good for our customers. However, if you want to know for sure, you should not only collect data, but also consistently analyze it and draw the right conclusions from it. Tracking and data analysis tools are often used without the results obtained being properly evaluated or implemented in measures. If you don't have the time to take care of this yourself, you should know someone who can. Because: This is the only way we can understand which content works best and optimize content accordingly.
3. see and hear: Video and audio formats
Storytelling for all the senses: this still works best in B2B and B2C marketing with video and audio formats. Anyone who has ever been trapped in a continuous loop of funny music clips knows how intensely short videos on TikTok, Instagram reels and YouTube shorts can capture attention. This is an opportunity to present your brand in a lively and memorable way: Images, sounds and short, concise text elements can be shared via social media as quickly as a product data sheet, but are much more memorable. Creative videos are definitely one of the B2B marketing trends of 2023, but they must not be too long.
This does not apply to podcasts: a survey result published by Statista in July 2019 shows that 44% of listeners consider a podcast length of between 11 and 30 minutes to be ideal. Podcasts enjoy a small but steadily growing fan base. Informative and entertaining productions are popular - even better if they are presented by people with recognized expertise or name recognition. Why not try preparing and presenting new product formats or services from your company? Use different formats such as interview, roundtable or storytelling podcasts and find out which ones prove to be particularly popular.
4. interactive content & AR and VR experiences
Become part of the story: Interactive content such as surveys, quizzes and games offer some relaxation in between and tell website operators more about the views and user behavior of their users. By integrating social media into a website, users can share content, discuss or simply exchange ideas about the website. Integrated AR and VR experiences, for example in virtual showrooms, are a particularly exciting option for product presentation. Products are placed virtually in a real or fictitious space and can be viewed as a 3D model by users from different perspectives. VR showrooms give a full impression of the space and capture users' attention for longer periods of time, for example with interactive offers such as consultations or live chats.
5 AI-supported tools
Highly controversial, but almost unthinkable without it: the use of artificial intelligence in content production. Chatbots, such as ChatGPT from OpenAI or You.com, make prepared content available after a short time. Is this ethically justifiable? This question will have to be clarified. At present, such programs are certainly not suitable for producing large volumes of text that meet a wide range of technical and linguistic requirements. However, AI can support research or quickly clarify terminology. You.com even provides the relevant sources and is therefore much more transparent than ChatGPT. Exciting developments can be expected in this field of future trends.
6. influencer strategies & purchasable content
Shoppable content is becoming increasingly important, especially in social commerce: if products can be purchased directly on social media, this reduces the risk of losing customers on the way from the social post to the online store. Product tags on social media posts shorten the customer journey, make the purchase as easy as possible and are definitely one of the top B2C marketing trends. This strategy can also be effectively combined with influencer marketing: If you succeed in using their reach or building up your own influencer personalities, there are opportunities for high audience impact here. The younger generation in particular likes to use Instagram and TikTok instead of Google for research - if you are there, you will be seen.
7. optimize content with UX & UI
Our last, but very important point: usability. UX (User Experience) & UI (User Interface) turn the interaction with the website and its visual elements into a positive experience for the user. To this end, user needs are analyzed and usability is optimized accordingly. Long passages of text hardly attract attention - but a visually appealing, varied page with infographics, images, integrated videos and animations (which can also be interactive, such as scroll-triggered animations that are only activated when the user scrolls over them) can achieve this. It is well known that the attention span when reading online is very short - usability takes this into account and prevents users from leaving boring, poorly functioning pages early.
Conclusion
When it comes to B2B marketing trends, the perfectly planned customer journey is still the number one requirement. More and more companies are recognizing how important it is to engage with users and their needs. What is changing are the content formats, the way they are created and the way they are used: content is being produced and placed in a more varied and flexible way - in favor of usability and page attractiveness.
